Exclusive! RAW agent Ravindra Kaushik’s biopic back on track, enters the scripting stage

Eight months after it was reported that the biopic on celebrated RAW agent Ravindra Kaushik, starring Salman Khan and helmed by Raj Kumar Gupta, had been shelved, we have now learnt that the project has been revived. The family of Ravindra Kaushik has now signed a contract with producers Divay Dhamija, Asvin Srivatsangam, and R Vivek to take things ahead on the production front.

In an exclusive conversation with us, Ravindra Kaushik’s nephew Vikram Vashisth, tells us, “We had given the rights to the biopic to Raj Kumar Gupta in 2016 and he announced its making in 2018. Mr Salman Khan was offered to play the part of my uncle. However, things didn’t progress primarily because my research wasn’t complete. I needed time to go through the documents and letters sent by my uncle back when he was jailed in Pakistan. Since it’s an official biopic, I don’t want to leave any stone unturned to make it as authentic as possible. We can’t just make a film on the basis of information that’s available in the public domain. The five-year agreement with Raj Kumar Gupta was till August 2021 but I needed more time to complete my research.”

He further adds, “We have now entered an agreement with Divay, Asvin, and Vivek and I am glad that the biopic is back on track. I have invested a lot of time in researching the film. I would really appreciate it if Salman sir played my uncle. If not him, my choice would be Ranbir Kapoor or Ranveer Singh.”

Born in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan on 11 April 1952, Ravindra Kaushik was just 23 when he first went undercover for RAW. He is regarded as India’s best spy to ever penetrate the ranks of the Pakistan army and received the nickname - The Black Tiger, by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He passed on critical information to the Indian defence forces from the year 1973 to 1983. Today is his 21st death anniversary.